Improvement in flooring-clamps



'E. BUCKLIN, 11-;

Flooring-Clamps;

Patented Jan. 27. 1874.

INVENTURI -WITNESSESl .4 m n m 3 v, m m V1 M m m w m a m w m M A UNITEDSTATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDVARD BUCKLTN, JR, OF PATVTUOKET, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOR TO DAVIS &NEWELL, OF SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT IN FLOORING-CLAMPS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 146,869, dated January27, 1874; application filed August 20, 1873.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDW'ARD BUGKLIN, Jr., of Pawtucket, in the county ofProvidence and State of Rhode Island, have invented a certainFlooring-Clamp, of which the following is a specification:

My said invention relates to a device for facilitating thelaying offloors in buildings, &c., and which may also be used for lifting and forother purposes. Said device consists of an elongated box containing asliding brace, which has properly-shaped teeth along its upper or outersurface, and which, by means of said teeth, is operated upon byreciprocating ratchets attached to an upright lever.

The accompanying drawing is hereby made a part of this specification,the indicating letters referring to the same parts whenever repeated.

a is the upright lever. I) and c are the reciprocating ratchets. (Z isthe sliding brace, with a shoulder, (represented by 6;) c, the elongatedbox. f is a dog for holding the device firmly in place when used forlaying floors, substantially as hereinafter set forth. 9 is a center orfulcrum, on which the lever-a oscillates. h h are screws, which securethe reciprocating ratchets b and c to said lever to.

It is intended that the several parts shall be made strong, of iron orother metal or metals, or other suitable materials, and that theseseveral parts shall'be put together in a substantial manner.

For laying floors, the use of m y said improved jack is substantially asfollows: The dog f is driven into one 'of the joists on which the flooris to be laid, or into any other suitable and convenient place tosecurely hold the jack in position, and the shoulder z is placed againstthe flooring board or plank to be laid. The lever a is then pusheddownward toward the dog f, thereby compelling the ratchet 0 to force thesliding brace farther out of the box 0, and bringing the ratchet I) backover one or more of the teeth on the sliding brace aforesaid. This beingdone, the lever is raised, and the ratchet b is thereby compelled toforce the said sliding box still farther out of the box 0, and carryingthe ratchet 0 backward over one or more of said teeth on the slidingbrace d. Thus, by each movement of the lever a, the shoulder 41 drivesthe flooring boa-rd or plank closer and closer home upon the plank orboard immediately preceding, and performs the work in a rapid, easy, andsimple manner.

For lifting purposes, the jack is placed on end, with the shoulder zuppermost and set underneath the weight sought to be raised. Theoperation of the lever and reciprocating ratchets is then the same asbefore described.

It will be observed that the operation of the reciprocating ratchets band c has this peculiar characteristic, that while one reaches after andobtains further gain and advantage, the other securely holds andpreserves the advantage and gain already obtained. It will be furtherobserved that the relative positions of the lever, fulcrum, andresistants are such that very great pressure and lifting capacity areeasily obtained from the manual operation of the device.

I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent-Thecombination of the double ratchet movement (shown by b c g a) withthe sliding brace at, box a, and dog f, substantially as and for thepurposes described and shown.

EDYVARD BUCKLIN, JR.

Witnesses Tnos. P. BARNEFIELD, OSCAR A. TANNER.

